Microsoft offers Windows embedded hardware bundle
InfoWorld | at | by Mike
Microsoft has created a program for electronics manufacturers that combines basic hardware with Windows CE .NET or Windows XP Embedded to entice more vendors to try Windows for new products, the company announced Monday. Under the new Windows Embedded Evaluation Hardware Kitting Program, electronics makers can get Windows CE .NET or Windows XP preloaded on the board they use at the heart of a new product, Microsoft said. Before, the manufacturers would have to load the software onto the hardware themselves.
Additionally, electronics companies can build as many as 1,000 units of the product without having to pay a software licensing fee. They will also get the Windows Embedded Evaluation Toolkit, said Debby Fry Wilson, director of Microsoft's Embedded and Appliance Platform Group.